Senior Pharmacy Technician - Dispensary
Guy’s and St Thomas’ is among the UK’s busiest and most successful NHS foundation trusts. We provide a full range of hospital and community services for people in south London and as well as specialist care for patients from further afield including cancer, renal, orthopaedic, respiratory and cardiovascular services.
Guy’s is home to the largest dental school in Europe and a £160 million Cancer Centre opened in 2016. As part of our commitment to provide care closer to home, in 2017 we also opened a cancer centre and a kidney treatment centre at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup.St Thomas’ has one of the largest critical care units in the UK and one of the busiest emergency departments in London. It is also home to Evelina London Children’s Hospital.
Evelina London cares for local children in Lambeth and Southwark and provides specialist services across south east England including cardiac, renal and critical care services. We lead a number of specialist service networks aiming to ensure children are treated locally where possible, but have access to specialist expertise when they need it.Our community services include health visiting, school nursing and support for families of children with long-term conditions.
Our adult community services teams deliver care at the heart of the local communities we serve, working in partnership with GPs, local authorities and other healthcare and voluntary sector organisations. Working with our partners in Lambeth and Southwark, we are focusing on new ways of working to improve care for local patients.
In February 2021 the Royal Brompton and Harefield joined Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, bringing together world-leading expertise in the care and research of heart and lung disease. Our merger provides a once in a generation opportunity to build a lasting, world-renowned heart and lung centre, providing the highest quality care for patients and conducting world-leading research.
We have a reputation for clinical excellence and high quality teaching and research. We are part of King’s Health Partners, one of eight accredited UK academic health sciences centres. In partnership with King’s College London we have dedicated clinical research facilities including an MHRA accredited Phase I clinical trials unit.
Patients are at the heart of everything we do and we pride ourselves on ensuring the best possible patient experience as well as safe, high quality care. We are proud to have one of the lowest mortality rates in the NHS. Following a comprehensive Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection in 2019 we maintained our overall rating of ‘good’.Our adult community services achieved a rating of ‘outstanding’.
The commitment of our 23,500 staff is key to our success. We are one of the largest local employers and we aim to develop and support all our staff so they are able to deliver high quality, safe and efficient care. The 2019 NHS staff survey results show that we have one of the most engaged and motivated workforces in the NHS.We know this has a positive impact on the care provided to our patients.
We have one of the most ambitious capital investment programmes anywhere in the NHS.
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has presented for a self-motivated, enthusiastic and committed individual to develop their dispensary knowledge and leadership skills in this exciting senior role within Inpatient Pharmacy at Guy's hospital.
We are looking for an experienced Pharmacy Technician with ACPT qualification to join our team; they must be GPhC registered, demonstrate a high standard of dispensing in line with CQC standards, participate in the training and development of a multi-disciplinary healthcare team, demonstrate comprehensive communication, adapt and display proactive working within a fast paced demanding dispensary to provide a comprehensive service.
You’ll join us as we embark on the delivery of our new Pharmacy 2030 strategy, with members of the Pharmacy Technician team being integral to innovative ways of providing patient care.
You will need to be able to participate in the bank holiday rota and weekend working and late duty support.
Main duties of the job- Dispense and check accurately inpatient medications in line with KPI's.
- Support the Principal Pharmacy Technician in delegating workflow
- Monitor and assist Senior Assistant Technical officers in PDR's, training and progression.
- Train and support multidisciplinary team, including but not limited to rotation Pre-registration Pharmacist and Student Pharmacy Technicians.
- Maintain, and investigate on behalf of Principal Pharmacy Technician high cost medication and controlled drugs.
- Participate in dispensary meetings and communications
- To undertake CPD and attend courses in practice areas where needs are identified.
For full information about the job, have a look through the Job Description, or get in touch.
Working for our organisation
Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UK’s best known hospitals – Guy’s, St Thomas’, Evelina London Children’s Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield – as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation.
We are among the UK’s busiest, most successful foundation trusts, providing specialist care for patients including heart and lung, cancer and renal services. We have a long tradition of clinical and scientific achievement and – as part of King’s Health Partners – we are one of England’s eight academic health sciences centres, bringing together world-class clinical services, teaching and research.
We strive to recruit and retain the best staff as the dedication and skills of our employees lie at the heart of our organisation and ensure that our services are of the highest quality, safe and focused on our patients.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities- Counsels’ patients and carers on the use of their medication as required.
- Deputises for the Principal Technician where relevant.
- Carries out the final check of the dispensing process as an accredited checking technician (ACPT).
- Supports the Principal Pharmacy Technician to ensure pharmacy assistant, student Pharmacy Technician's and post-qualification pharmacy technician training is accommodated within the department (including dispensing accuracy and ACPT).
- Assists the Principal Pharmacy Technician with induction, training and development of staff working within the section/department.
- Supports the Principal Pharmacy Technician in ensuring that Trust Policies and Procedures are implemented and adhered to.
- Participate and lead dispensary meetings and communications
- Participates in the timely, accurate and cost-effective dispensing of medication which may include clinical trials, chemotherapy and unlicensed medicines.
- Supports the Principal Pharmacy Technician in the supervision of and technical operation of the dispensary.
- Undertakes environmental monitoring for technical quality assurance, where appropriate. This will include investigating and responding to alarms from the temperature monitoring system affected by any temperature alerts.
- Resolves stock discrepancies and actions drug alerts.
- Carries out appraisals as required and ensures appropriate records are kept
- Is involved in recruitment of technical staff and pharmacy assistants when necessary.
- Participates in departmental audits and project work as necessary.
- Has a responsibility to ensure equipment, furnishings, etc. are maintained.
- Works with other senior Pharmacy Technicians and Principal Technicians to maintain good communication and efficient working throughout the service.
- Maintains Controlled drug and high cost medication stock
- Accurately dispensing and checking medications
Person specification
Education and Qualifications
Essential criteria- NVQ Pharmacy services Level 3 plus an accredited underpinning knowledge (BTEC in Pharmaceutical Science or equivalent) or equivalent
- Registered as a Pharmacy Technician with the General Pharmaceutical Council
- Completion of the Accreditation Checking Pharmacy Technician Scheme (ACPT) or working towards
- Practice/Educational Supervisor qualification
- Leadership qualification
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
Essential criteria- Demonstrated ability to dispense accurately to set standards
- Demonstrate the ability to solve queries, prioritise and adapt in a hospital setting
- Demonstrated the ability to communicate effectively using clear written and spoken English to overcome barriers to understanding
- Demonstrate the ability to accurately check complex prescriptions
- Working with pharmacy software systems, EPIC pharmacy management or equivalent
- Working in a Hospital or community Pharmacy
Previous Experience
Essential criteria- Demonstrated experience of ability to appraise staff and set performance objectives
- Previous evaluated experience of participation in project and audit work
- ACPT experience within hospital setting
- Supervising and mentoring pharmacy staff
- Demonstrate the ability to maintain high cost and controlled drug stock levels
Guy’s and St Thomas’ celebrates, respects and values the diversity of its staff and patients. We review our policies, procedures and practices to ensure that all employees, patients and carers are treated equitable according to their needs. We are actively committed to ensuring that no one who applies for a job, works or study’s at the Trust, or accesses our services is discriminated against on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, religion or belief, age, gender identity , gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity/paternity, or marital/civil partnership.
Applications are welcomed from applicants with a disability. We can make reasonable adjustments and offer support and advice in a variety of ways throughout the application process. Equality of opportunity is our policy.
As an organisation we are committed to developing our services in ways that best suit the needs of our patients. This means that some staff groups will increasingly be asked to work a more flexible shift pattern so that we can offer services in the evenings or at weekends.
Flexible working
We are committed to supporting all employees to achieve a healthy work life balance and to work in a way that is best for them and our patients. We will consider all requests to work flexibly, taking in to account the individual’s personal circumstances as well the needs of the service.We encourage all prospective applicants to discuss their individual circumstances with the recruiting manager as part of the on-boarding process.
Your e-mail address is important to us - We communicate to all job applicants via the e-mail address which has been provided on the application form. Please ensure that you check your e-mail on a regular basis.
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